Geo Week to Relocate to Salt Lake City, Utah in 2027
Geo Week to Relocate to Salt Lake City, Utah in 2027
Woolpert
From wide-area mapping with airborne sensors to detailed terrestrial scans, Geo Week is where lidar professionals discover the workflows, technology, and expertise to deliver accurate, actionable data across industries.
Lidar specialists are being asked to capture, process, and deliver massive datasets with greater speed and precision — while adapting to new client demands and budget constraints. At Geo Week, you’ll gain direct access to experts, technology providers, and peers who are shaping the future of aerial and terrestrial lidar applications.
Below is a collection of sessions for lidar professionals – be sure to view the complete conference program schedule to see all the sessions available to you!
Wide-Area airborne surveying and mapping projects are vital for modern infrastructure and urban planning. The primary goal is to update base maps that serve as essential tools in both public and private sectors to enable a variety of applications including infrastructure, construction, urban planning, agriculture, forestry, oil and gas, and mining. As a result, large airborne surveying and mapping projects are conducted regularly around the world. These initiatives aim to acquire high-resolution aerial imagery that can encompass entire countries, states, provinces, counties, or cities. By leveraging advanced technology and navigating the complexities of lidar, photogrammetric, and geodetic systems, these projects can significantly contribute to the development and maintenance of accurate base maps, ultimately enhancing decision-making processes across sectors. As a result, large airborne surveying and mapping projects are conducted regularly across the United States and globally. These initiatives aim to acquire high-resolution aerial imagery that can encompass entire countries, states, provinces, counties, or cities. The primary goal is to update base maps that serve as essential tools in both public and private sectors to enable a variety of applications including infrastructure, construction, urban planning, agriculture, forestry, oil and gas, and mining.
Typically, these projects are outsourced by government entities to a qualified service provider. Once chosen, the service provider takes on full responsibility for the project, encompassing several key phases:
These surveys are often conducted using crewed aircraft equipped with LiDAR systems & large-format multi-camera systems. In countries with well-defined geodetic datums and geoids, such as the USA, Canada, Australia, Western Europe, and Japan, mapping projects can proceed more smoothly. However, in many developing nations, the lack of investment in reliable geodetic systems presents significant challenges. This gap can complicate large mapping projects, leading to discrepancies and inefficiencies.
To delve deeper into the intricacies of executing large aerial survey projects, a panel discussion will be held featuring experienced executives from various mapping companies. This session aims to explore both the scientific and artistic aspects of aerial surveying, highlighting best practices, technological advancements, and the challenges faced in different regions. Designed to be informative, educational, and interactive, industry experts have been invited to participate in this session as speakers and panelists, followed by an audience discussion.
Airborne mapping is advancing at an unprecedented pace, driven by innovations in lidar, photogrammetry, and sensor integration. This session brings together leaders in the field to explore the latest developments shaping high-altitude data collection and analysis. Presentations will cover breakthroughs in photon-counting lidar and systems achieving 10+ MHz measurement rates, the rise of modern large-format and multi-sensor camera systems, and results from a controlled side-by-side comparison of competing airborne lidar platforms. Additional research will highlight how flight line overlap influences data quality in forestry applications, informing acquisition strategies and best practices. Together, these talks illustrate how today’s technologies are setting new benchmarks for accuracy, efficiency, and insight in airborne geospatial data collection.
Experts in the field of image analysis and classification will present applications of single and fused data sets for mapping and monitoring vegetation, accuracy assessment considerations, and how these data are used in decision making.
The National Spatial Reference System (NSRS) is undergoing a major transformation to provide more accurate, accessible, and consistent geospatial reference data across the United States. This session will present the latest technical updates on NSRS modernization, including advancements in geodetic reference frames, updated survey standards, and enhanced tools for positioning and measurement. Attendees will learn how these changes impact surveying, mapping, infrastructure, and engineering projects, and gain practical guidance for integrating modernized NSRS data into workflows. This session is essential for professionals seeking to stay current with the evolving national geospatial reference framework.
Aerial surveys today leverage sophisticated integrated systems of LiDAR, multi-head cameras, and robust IMU/GNSS for precise data acquisition, transforming raw pixels, LiDAR point clouds, and positioning data into invaluable mapping and surveying products. As the volume and complexity of this data grows for different market verticals, so does the imperative for efficiency, accuracy, and innovative application. This session, moderated by CartoData, a leading service provider, brings three industry pioneers together: Riegl (LiDAR), Phase One (Imaging Solutions), and Trimble Applanix (Positioning Systems). They will delve into the current capabilities and future perspective of their respective sensor technologies and data processing workflows. The discussion will illustrate how these integrated solutions develop project success, advance productivity, and address operational challenges in real-world scenarios. We will explore how advancements in data fusion and the burgeoning integration of Artificial Intelligence are poised to revolutionize analysis, automation, and the very nature of geospatial intelligence driven by these aerial platforms, revealing the future of mapping in reality.
Behind every stunning bathymetric lidar dataset lies a series of challenges, missteps, and lessons learned. This session pulls back the curtain on the reality of bathy lidar acquisition and processing — where data doesn’t always look perfect at first pass. Industry experts will share examples of problematic datasets, discuss what went wrong, and explain how their teams diagnosed and resolved those issues. Attendees will gain an honest, behind-the-scenes understanding of what it takes to turn raw bathy lidar into reliable, high-quality data — and valuable insight for those considering or just starting out in this complex field.
Make your case to attend and get all the details to make your trip seamless.
